Shake a paw! (Sometimes)

Well, we started last night trying to teach these pups some tricks. The challenge with two ARF puppies and a dog of your own is focusing with training on one....Every time I say "Shake" to Edge and our dog is around, our dog tosses her paw up in front of Edge. So, down to the basement we go with one pup in toe and pocketful of bite-sized highly valued rewards. After several minutes of licking at my hand to retrieve the treat, Edge put her paw up on my hand to say, "give me that!" Pretty soon, I just had to hold the treat in my hand over her head (while she sat) and she'd offer up one of her paws. Now she can't get enough. Soon we'll be shaking paws left right and centre, even without treats.

We also tried with Levi last night, but he got bored very quickly. However, he must have thought about that trick all night (or Levi told him the secret to getting delicious treats) and this morning he figured it out no problem. So we're well on the way to learning Shake a Paw!!